This collection of civil registration includes the years 1850 to 1959.

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This Collection will include records from 1850 to 1959.<br>

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== Record Description ==

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This collection contains records of births, marriages, and deaths from civil registration in different districts of the Bahamas. Earlier records are handwritten in narrative style; later records are handwritten in formatted records. The text of the records is in English. Records are listed in chronological order.

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For a list of records by date or locality currently published in this collection, select the [https://www.familysearch.org/search/image/index#uri=https%3A//api.familysearch.org/records/collection/1922411/waypoints Browse] link from the collection landing page.

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The earliest reference to public registration of records in the Bahamas was in 1764. By 1862, a separate office named the Registry of Records was created to record the civil events; later, the name was changed to Registrar General’s Department in 1914. At that time, there were a few registrars legally appointed to record the events of birth and death, or marriages, or other life event. Before 1914, each registration form was to be filled as accurate as possible and subsequently returned to the Registry of Records, now the Registrar General’s Department, where all the records are properly archived.

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These records were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens and to safeguard their legal interests.

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Civil records of birth, marriage, and death are the best records for family history research after 1862.

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=== Citation for This Collection ===

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The following citation refers to the original source of the information for collections published in FamilySearch.org. Source citations include the author, custodian, publisher and archive for the original records.

This collection contains records of births, marriages, and deaths from civil registration in different districts of the Bahamas. Earlier records are handwritten in narrative style; later records are handwritten in formatted records. The text of the records is in English. Records are listed in chronological order.

To begin your search for baptisms in this collection, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:

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*Name of parents

*Name of parents

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*Parents' birth place

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*Approximate year of baptism and place of baptism

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*Burial place

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*Burial date

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== How to Use the Record ==

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To begin your search for marriage records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:

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*Names of bride or groom

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*Approximate year of marriage and place of marriage

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*Name of parents

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To begin your search for death records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:

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Begin your search by finding your ancestors in the index. Name indexes to births, marriages, and death make it possible to access a specific record quickly. Remember that these indexes may contain inaccuracies, such as altered spellings, misinterpretations, and optical character recognition errors if the information was scanned.

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*Name of deceased

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*Approximate year of death and place of death

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'''When searching the index it is helpful to know the following:'''

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==== Search the Collection ====

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*The place where the event occurred

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To search the collection image by image select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page:<br> ⇒ Select the "Record Type and Years" category which will take you to the images.

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*The name and surname of the person

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*The approximate date of the event

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*The name of the parents or spouse

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Use the locator information found in the index (such as page, entry, or certificate number) to locate your ancestors in the records. Compare the information in the record to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct person. You may need to compare the information of more than one person to make this determination.

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Look at each image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

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When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. Add this new information to your records of each family.

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==== Using the Information ====

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'''For example:'''

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When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors.

*Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information.

*Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information.

Line 79:

Line 103:

*When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

*When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

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'''Keep in mind:'''

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==== Tips to Keep in Mind ====

*The information in church records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.

*The information in church records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.

Line 85:

Line 109:

*There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another.

*There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another.

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'''If you are unable to find the ancestors you are looking for, try the following:'''

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==== Unable to Find the Information? ====

*Check for variant spellings of the surnames.

*Check for variant spellings of the surnames.

Line 91:

Line 115:

*Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

*Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

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== Record History ==

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==== General Information About These Records ====

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The earliest reference to public registration of records in the Bahamas was in 1764. By 1862, a separate office named the Registry of Records was created to record the civil events; later, the name was changed to Registrar General’s Department in 1914. At that time, there were a few registrars legally appointed to record the events of birth and death, or marriages, or other life event. Before 1914, each registration form was to be filled as accurate as possible and subsequently returned to the Registry of Records, now the Registrar General’s Department, where all the records are properly archived.

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There are indexes available for the marriage records in this collections. The indexes are found in the Marriage Index 1910-1955 folder. Find your ancestors name and look for the year, number, page number and book letter located next to their name. This will help you find the record you are looking for in the collection.

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=== Why the Record Was Created ===

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There are no indexes for the birth and death records. Consider finding a marriage record first and then look for birth and death records.

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These records were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens and to safeguard their legal interests.

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=== Record Reliability ===

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Civil records of birth, marriage, and death are the best records for family history research after 1862.

== Related Websites ==

== Related Websites ==

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{{Contributor_invite}}

{{Contributor_invite}}

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== Citation for This Collection ==

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The following citation refers to the original source of the data and images published on FamilySearch.org Historical Records. It may include the author, custodian, publisher, and archive for the original records.

Record Description

This Collection will include records from 1850 to 1959.

This collection contains records of births, marriages, and deaths from civil registration in different districts of the Bahamas. Earlier records are handwritten in narrative style; later records are handwritten in formatted records. The text of the records is in English. Records are listed in chronological order.

For a list of records by date or locality currently published in this collection, select the Browse link from the collection landing page.

The earliest reference to public registration of records in the Bahamas was in 1764. By 1862, a separate office named the Registry of Records was created to record the civil events; later, the name was changed to Registrar General’s Department in 1914. At that time, there were a few registrars legally appointed to record the events of birth and death, or marriages, or other life event. Before 1914, each registration form was to be filled as accurate as possible and subsequently returned to the Registry of Records, now the Registrar General’s Department, where all the records are properly archived.

These records were created to keep track of the vital events happening in the lives of the citizens and to safeguard their legal interests.

Civil records of birth, marriage, and death are the best records for family history research after 1862.

Citation for This Collection

The following citation refers to the original source of the information for collections published in FamilySearch.org. Source citations include the author, custodian, publisher and archive for the original records.

How to Use the Record

To begin your search for baptisms in this collection, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:

Name of parents

Approximate year of baptism and place of baptism

To begin your search for marriage records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:

Names of bride or groom

Approximate year of marriage and place of marriage

Name of parents

To begin your search for death records, it would be helpful if you knew the following information:

Name of deceased

Approximate year of death and place of death

Search the Collection

To search the collection image by image select "Browse through images" on the initial collection page: ⇒ Select the "Record Type and Years" category which will take you to the images.

Look at each image comparing the information with what you already know about your ancestors to determine which one is your ancestor. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to make this determination.

Using the Information

When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors.

Use the marriage date and place as the basis for compiling a new family group or for verifying existing information.

Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth of each partner to find a couple's birth records and parents' names.

Use the birth date or age along with the place of birth to find the family in census records.

Use the residence and names of the parents to locate church and land records.

Occupations listed can lead you to other types of records such as employment or military records.

Use the parents' birth places to find former residences and to establish a migration pattern for the family.

The name of the officiator is a clue to their religion or area of residence in the county. However, ministers may have reported marriages performed in other counties.

Compile the marriage entries for every person who has the same surname as the bride or groom; this is especially helpful in rural areas or if the surname is unusual.

Continue to search the marriage records to identify children, siblings, parents, and other relatives of the bride and groom who may have married in the same county or nearby. This can help you identify other generations of your family or even the second marriage of a parent. Repeat this process for each new generation you identify.

Use the marriage number to identify previous marriages.

When looking for a person who had a common name, look at all the entries for the name before deciding which is correct.

Tips to Keep in Mind

The information in church records is usually reliable, but depends upon the reliability of the informant.

Earlier records may not contain as much information as the records created after the late 1800.

There is also some variation in the information given from one record to another.

Unable to Find the Information?

Check for variant spellings of the surnames.

Check for a different index. There are often indexes at the beginning of each volume.

Search the indexes and records of nearby localities.

General Information About These Records

There are indexes available for the marriage records in this collections. The indexes are found in the Marriage Index 1910-1955 folder. Find your ancestors name and look for the year, number, page number and book letter located next to their name. This will help you find the record you are looking for in the collection.

There are no indexes for the birth and death records. Consider finding a marriage record first and then look for birth and death records.

Related Websites

Related Wiki Articles

Contributions to This Article

We welcome user additions to FamilySearch Historical Records wiki articles. We are looking for additional information that will help readers understand the topic and better use the available records. We also need translations for collection titles and images in articles about records written in languages other than English. For specific needs, please visit WikiProject FamilySearch Records.

Please follow these guidelines as you make changes. Thank you for any contributions you may provide.

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections

When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.